Government servants are known to fleece residents in Maungdaw on the western Burma border whenever they drop into their departmental offices. The extortion is resorted to because the Burmese regime does not pay adequate salary to them to provide for their families.

A woman from Maungdaw said that the Electric Power Corporation is part of the corruption game in Maungdaw and employees of the department will not provide any service without first being bribed.

In Maungdaw Township, residents have to apply to the township authorities to get an electric meter box and pay an official charge of 150,000 Kyat if they need electricity supply from the government. However, after the authorities grant permission for a meter box, residents have to again pay 16,000 Kyat to the EPC for installing the meter box in their house.

Residents have to pay another 5,000 or 10,000 Kyat to the individual EPC employee for a cover box for the meter. The cover box is made of wood and is hung on the wall of the home by the EPC employee when they set up the meter.

After the meter box is finally installed, the EPC authorities continue to collect 500 Kyat every month as a maintenance fee for the meter.

The woman from Maungdaw said that she spent 200,000 Kyat just to be able to get electricity, but the power is only available at her home from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. four days a week.